Walmart Canada will stop offering plastic bags on May the first 2022.

jimintoronto

Well-known Member
Walmart in Canada will no longer offer plastic bags at any of their stores as of May the first. By doing this, Walmart expects to reduce the plastic they put into land fills by 10 million bags a year. Canadians already use durable woven carry bags for a majority of their shopping needs. Link.Walmart Canada to eliminate single-use plastic bags Walmart has 408 stores in Canada. JImB.
 

Plastic waste is creating all sorts of problems. One can hardly go anywhere without seeing discarded plastic sacks, bottles, cups, etc., lining the roadways and streets. Much of this waste seems to find its way into the oceans and onto the shorelines. In most locales, there are little, or no, recycling programs for this waste. Eventually, if no action is taken, many areas will begin to look like a landfill.
 
Plastic waste is creating all sorts of problems. One can hardly go anywhere without seeing discarded plastic sacks, bottles, cups, etc., lining the roadways and streets. Much of this waste seems to find its way into the oceans and onto the shorelines. In most locales, there are little, or no, recycling programs for this waste. Eventually, if no action is taken, many areas will begin to look like a landfill.
While I agree with your sentiments, I will point out that Canada has been cracking down on the use of plastic for a number of years, and this move by Walmart Canada is just one of many efforts right across our country. Most of our take out food is now in cardboard containers, and this coming week the City of Toronto's recycling trucks will be picking up thousands of yard waste paper bags, which will go to city owned vacant land, to be turned into compost. NEXT summer that compost will be dumped in city parks and the residents will be able to go and fill containers with composted materials, and use them on their gardens for free. We don't allow the burning of leaves in the fall any more, so in the fall the city trucks pick up tons of leaves that go to become compost, which is later returned to the residents as composted material. The Beer Store accepts the plastic rings from beer cans, as well as the cardboard beer cases. Apartment buildings here have compacting machines which produce bales of cardboard which are sold to recycling companies for money. JimB.
 
If it happens in the US, I won't like it for selfish reasons. I use them as trash bags. I don't buy trash bags like most people. I have a small trash can in my kitchen. Those bags fit perfectly. Otherwise, I am still environmentally responsible putting my green bin on the curb with the other plastics and paper.
 
Walmart in Canada will no longer offer plastic bags at any of their stores

I believe plastics are an environmental problem, and I am sure these disposable bags contribute. They make for highly visible irritating litter for sure. However a lot of engineering has gone into reducing the plastic content of these bags, it really isn't a lot compared to other things we use and throw away.

However when I hear things like this I get a bit skeptical. I suspect Walmart could be doing this as a feel good marketing ploy as much as to protect the environment.

What will be the impact of the reusable bags? They appear to me to contain more plastic than the disposable ones, how long does the average one last? What is the typical fate? Has Walmart or anyone done an net environmental benefit of this? I doubt it.

This quote comes from the article, Walmart says:

"Customers will be encouraged to bring reusable options from home to carry out their purchases. Low-cost, high-quality reusable options will also be available for purchase, if needed."

So I suspect Walmart will profit from these new "Low-cost" reusable bags, as well as from any customer goodwill this generates.

Oh well, maybe I am wrong and just turning into a curmudgeon in my old age...
 
I believe plastics are an environmental problem, and I am sure these disposable bags contribute. They make for highly visible irritating litter for sure. However a lot of engineering has gone into reducing the plastic content of these bags, it really isn't a lot compared to other things we use and throw away.

However when I hear things like this I get a bit skeptical. I suspect Walmart could be doing this as a feel good marketing ploy as much as to protect the environment.

What will be the impact of the reusable bags? They appear to me to contain more plastic than the disposable ones, how long does the average one last? What is the typical fate? Has Walmart or anyone done an net environmental benefit of this? I doubt it.

This quote comes from the article, Walmart says:

"Customers will be encouraged to bring reusable options from home to carry out their purchases. Low-cost, high-quality reusable options will also be available for purchase, if needed."

So I suspect Walmart will profit from these new "Low-cost" reusable bags, as well as from any customer goodwill this generates.

Oh well, maybe I am wrong and just turning into a curmudgeon in my old age...
The reusable bags that we have here are actually made FROM recycled plastic pop bottles in a woven material. The ones that my Wife and I have are more than 5 years old and we use them weekly, year round. They are durable and we simply keep them in the trunk of our car, so they are available . They are machine washable. The cost of one is 99 cents. Do you have a problem with a company making a profit on a item that they sell ? Remember that recycling in Canada is a matter of daily life, with national regulations that enforce compliance. JimB.
 
If it happens in the US, I won't like it for selfish reasons. I use them as trash bags. I don't buy trash bags like most people. I have a small trash can in my kitchen. Those bags fit perfectly. Otherwise, I am still environmentally responsible putting my green bin on the curb with the other plastics and paper.
As an alternative you could buy paper bags that will fit your small trash can. Remember when supermarkets used paper bags ? I do. JimB.
 
Do you have a problem with a company making a profit on a item that they sell ?
Not at all, so long as the profit is not made on the back of misleading environmental claims. If everyone used their bags as responsibly as you do then I think this would work. Not sure most will, probably not in the US anyway.
Remember when supermarkets used paper bags ?
Some ours still do, or offer the option anyway. I like paper better than plastic, but again I am not sure what the net environmental impact is. I feel better about using paper bags to start fires in my wood stove, plastic might work, but I don't do that.
 
Plastic bags became obsolete here a couple of years ago. It was horrible to see the sea birds or any other birds or fish being strangled through, as has been said above, people not picking up after themselves. Now only paper bags or our own kits, or baskets are allowed.
 
As an alternative you could buy paper bags that will fit your small trash can. Remember when supermarkets used paper bags ? I do. JimB.
I remember my mother using paper bags for garbage. And I remember them leaking, smelling, and breaking, leaving garbage all over the floor. And having to wash the outside trash cans because of leaking garbage which smelled and attracted maggots. Give me plastic trash bags anytime. I wish there were a better way, because I'm concerned about plastic ruining the environment also.

I do recycle all the plastic shopping bags.
 
I agree cut down on plastic but I am wondering about online grocery pick up. What will they put your groceries in?
I wondered about this too. Walmart here has already gone to no plastic bags. It doesn’t seem too popular to use the pick up service. (Translate that as I rarely use it so don’t think others do either). Perhaps they‘ll bring out the bins and you’ll be expected to load the goods into your bags in the car.
 
We keep a supply of these small plastic bags for use in the small trash cans in the bathrooms, etc. Every few months, when we have a bunch of extra bags, we take the excess to our local Walmart...where they have a recycle bin inside the main entrance.

The "plastic waste" that I would like to see addressed is these plastic water bottles. It seems that all the roadways are littered with these that people throw out of their car windows. I would like to see a good "deposit" placed on them, so as to induce people to recycle them, instead of tossing them.
 
The Beer Store accepts the plastic rings from beer cans
Those things, in particular, are a curse

I fish
Those plastic rings are strewn everywhere by the careless
Not only are they ugly and don't disintegrate, but fish get caught in them
My buddy and I bring a gunny sack
It's pretty full by the time we've walked the stream
Plastic being the biggie, among the cans and Styrofoam
 
I have 2 plastic bags folded in my purse. On shopping days my son brings the reusable bags in for me. When it is just DH and I then I make use of the folded up bags.
 
As @Lewkat replied...N.J. initiated it's ban too. The ban starts on May 4th. It will include paper bags ...no more will be given at grocery stores. But some plastic bags will be allowed. What is and is not allowed is all kind of crazy to me. I understand why we need to lessen the use of plastic bags. I have been taking my own reusable, washable bags to the grocery stores for a couple of years. Here is an article that tries to make sense of it all by answering questions we have:
https://www.nj.com/news/2022/04/nj-...ill-have-questions-we-still-have-answers.html
 
I was using cloth bags at the grocery store. Then Covid came, and we had to use plastic bags. After putting away my groceries, I had a huge pile of plastic bags-some even double bagged. I had forgotten how much plastic you bring home. Yesterday I picked a small vial of meds from RiteAid. It was sealed in a plastic bag, which was sealed in a larger plastic bag. And then guess what? Yup, they put it in a plastic bag.
 
We pack our car for the grocery store shopping. We carry a cooler in the back and take in our own reusable bags. If we have several stops we have a large reusable bag we transfer items into as we make our stops. We try to not to shop at Walmart at all.
 


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